This invention relates to disc brakes and, particularly to disc brakes of the kind including a carrier adapted to be secured to a non-rotatable part of a vehicle and having two circumferentially spaced arm portions which straddle respectively the outer circumference of a rotatable disc, a pair of friction pads disposed on opposite sides of the disc and being supported on the arm portions of the carrier to slide in the direction of the axis of the disc, a caliper mounted on the carrier to slide in the direction of the axis of the disc and straddling the outer circumference of the disc, and a brake actuator incorporated in the caliper for applying one friction pad against one surface of the disc. The reaction force of the brake actuator displaces the caliper on the carrier to apply the other friction pad against the other surface of the disc. The braking torque generating in the friction pads may directly received by the arm portions of the carrier.
Usually, one or two pad springs formed of a sheet metal are mounted between the carrier, the caliper and the friction pads to bias the caliper radially outwards and friction pads radially inwards with respect to the axis of the disc so as to take up the manufacturing tolerance, to prevent vibrations of the caliper and of the friction pads and to suppress chattering noises in operating the vehicle.
However, there are problems such that the pad spring is retained on the carrier and slidingly contacts with the caliper and with friction pads, thereby the spring force acting on the caliper and on friction pads will change, particularly when the friction pads have worn, and that the assembling operation is troublesome and time consuming.